Chapter 40
Chapter 40 – Kutan Desert (7)
“I am Zhang Yide!”
Sungjin enunciated and pronounced each and every word carefully until the end. The book closed itself and flew into his arms. This was proof that the ‘Declamation’ had successfully activated. The Operator gave out an announcement.
[Seance of Zhang Fei Yide activated!]
The books always arm the user with the perfect skill for the circumstance. Sungjin grasped the ‘Moon Specter’ and charged towards the Genie immediately.
[Passive skill – Enhance Attack(III), Swift(III) applied.]
Sungjin didn’t pay attention to the Operator’s announcements, but he felt his size increase and his movements speed up.
“Baa~”
Soldamyr, who was busy turning the Crocodile into a sheep returned his attention back onto Sungjin, who was rushing towards him.
Sungjin was moving even faster than before; the same guy who could, even in normal conditions, dodge bolts of lightning. Soldamyr decided to turn him into a sheep as well. He began to recite the incantation rapidly.
“Discard your fangs and”
However, Sungjin heard the Operator’s voice while charging towards the Genie.
[Active Skill Shout of Changban(I) is available for instant cast]
Sungjin did not know what Shout of Changban was but
“ become a tame sheep!”
He didn’t have time to think it through. The spell was nearly complete. Sungjin wasted no time activating the skill.
“Shout of Changban!”
His mouth moved on its own after,
“Come and battle me to the death!”
A voice loud enough to tremble the earth burst forth. Following the superhuman bellow, the Genie was unable to continue the incantation.
Sungjin didn’t know for sure, but it seemed to have a spell cancellation effect. Soldamyr attempted to stop Sungjin using his hands, but Sungjin easily cut away the fingers.
Sungjin leapt up to his arm and began carving up the Genie’s body.
Without magic, the Mage ‘Soldamyr’ was unable to put up resistance to Sungjin’s blade properly; he severely lacked in physical offense or defense.
[Effects of Seance over in 10, 9]
The operator began a countdown but
[8, 7]
When about 7 seconds were left, the Genie’s body suddenly turned into smoke along with a ‘pop’ and was sucked back into the lamp. Left alone mid-air, Sungjin spun around in the air a few times and landed on the sand safely.
The Operator’s cube announced his victory soon after.
[Hidden boss Great Genie]
[Soldamyr Cleared!]
Sungjin returned the Moon Specter to the sheath. And then let out a sigh of relief.
“Whew~”
But then
‘Grr’
The zombie Crocodile came running towards him after the polymorph spell ended.
“Oh my goodness”
Sungjin was surprised by the Crocodile twice now. He had forgotten that he had reanimated the Corpse using his magic.
“Grr”
The Crocodile orbited Sungjin as if searching for something to attack.
“Whoa, whoa, Ok I got it, it’s over. Return.”
Responding to Sungjin’s gestures, the Crocodile returned to being a corpse. Finishing the combat, Sungjin opened the Magic waterskin and poured the water onto his head.
“Ha..”
It was not an easy combat. ‘Soldamyr’ lived up to his name as the greatest mage in Kutan’s history; his spells were incredibly powerful.
Without “Romance of the Three Kingdoms’ and Seance of ‘Zhang Fei’, it would have been an extremely difficult and drawn out fight. Sungjin asked the Operator out of curiosity.
“Operator, what’s the actual effect of ‘Shout of Changban’ active skill?”
The Operator opened up an information screen.
Active Skill – Shout of Changban
Innate skill of Seance of ‘Zhang Fei’
Make a thunderous shout
All things within a 300-meter radius, including the caster,
Are unable to cast abilities for 10 seconds
This was most definitely a ‘hard counter’ for any mage character. The true strength of the book was not just from the spell effects, but the fact that it picks the spell based on the situation; the book would call forth the perfect hero from the story using Seance.
‘When I have to face other Mages… I might see it again.’
Sungjin organized his thoughts as he corked the waterskin and returned it to his belt. Now that he took a look at himself, he saw that a portion of his clothes had been burnt off.
It probably happened while he was dodging the bolts of lightning. Sungjin spoke to himself absentmindedly.
“This is probably the first time I lost so much HP… right, Operator?”
The Operator responded even to his ramblings.
[This is correct. You have lost a total of 4724 HP. This is the highest recorded HP you have lost so far.]
Sungjin’s HP was approaching 20,000, but for ‘normal hunters’, taking 4724 was nearly lethal.
‘I didn’t even take a single hit straight on… what an amazing power.’
Sungjin thought as he stretched himself. After the Genie had disappeared, all that was left was the intense rays of the sun. He couldn’t help but think of the cool balcony of Ninety Nine Nights.
‘When I go back this time… I should have chilled noodles. Yes… Chilled. And Sherbet ice cream for dessert….hmm, I wonder if there are still mobs left. It’s not going to start handing out raid reward yet, is it?’ *
Sungjin turned to the Operator.
“Operator, is there any hidden elements left? If there is, please activate Treasure Hunter now.”
[There are no more hidden elements left in this chapter.]
It must be because the ‘hidden place’ held the secret boss, rather than an item.
‘Hmm… I see…’
Sungjin nodded to himself as he was thinking, but the Operator continued to speak.
[Raid 100% complete.]
Sungjin looked at the cube in surprise.
‘What?’
The other hunters must have finished hunting the rest of the monsters. Sungjin celebrated internally.
‘That’s great! Let’s get the rewards and go home.’
But the Operator wasn’t done.
[However, there is an active ‘Troll’ in the party.]
[Raid reward will be postponed until the troll, or the other members are eliminated]
[or if the timer runs out.]
“Hmm?”
Sungjin stared at the cube.
“Troll?”
Something must have happened between the other four Hunters. Sungjin gazed into the distance. Tanned sand continued endlessly towards the horizon.
Just roaming the desert was torture, but trying to find the troll hiding in the middle of this vast desert within the time limit was nothing short of impossible. Sungjin considered his options.
‘What should I do?’
But it was at that moment
‘Whoosh woosh woosh woosh’
He heard something from behind.
*
While Igor was running towards the Oasis, the Operator gave out an announcement.
[Warning! Hidden boss]
[The Great Genie ‘Soldamyr’ has appeared!]
Igor turned to look at the cube with the corner of his eyes.
‘Hidden boss? There are hidden bosses?’
It only took him a moment to accept it, since he could visually confirm the existence of the hidden boss from afar. Seeing the form of the giant hovering over the oasis, he was certain
‘The secret behind the missing 5%… that must be it.’
Not too long after, Igor was able to reach the Oasis. The battle had already started by the time he arrived.
“Incinerate everything in your Path! Fireball!”
Igor hid himself behind a dune and watched the fight. The ‘Hidden boss’ Genie wielded unbelievably powerful magic.
It was incomparably stronger than the mage bosses of the past, such as the Lich or the Two-headed Ogre. Igor quickly calculated in his head.
The Teenager currently had 73.6% of the total contribution. If he gets killed by the Genie, Igor would get all of it automatically. Problem was
“Solidify!”
The Teenager skill was also incredible, being able to face off against the Genie alone on equal terms. Igor theorized three outcomes.
First, if the teenager is killed, he would leave the Oasis before the Genie discovers him. The Genie was probably an extremely dangerous foe.
Two, if the Teenager wins without much problem, he would, again, leave the Oasis. No matter how he thought of it, the teenager’s skills were above his own. He didn’t forget the fact that he, as a troll, could be killed by others without any penalty.
Three, in case the fight was close and the teenager pulls of a narrow victory… Igor looked down at his sword and shield.
‘If that’s the case, I will finish it myself.’
He was already in the ‘troll state’. There was nothing to lose by putting more blood on his hands. Planning his next move carefully, Igor slowly made his way into the tall grass of the Oasis and hid himself.
He was confident in camouflage and ambush. He was confident that he could avoid detection without a camo suit.
Hiding in the bush, he watched the fight. The Genie appeared to have the upper hand.
“Lance which pierces all! Lightning Bolt!”
The teenager seemed unable to deal with the Genie’s rapid spell attacks properly. But the tables turned suddenly.
“I am Zhang Yide!”
It was after the Teenager read out of a book. An ancient Chinese warrior appeared and hovered behind him like a guardian spirit.
And the Teenager dashed forward, even faster than before. Igor thought
‘Is it… some sort of buff spell?’
But the book effects did not stop there. Opening his mouth, suddenly the Teenager bellowed.
“COME AND BATTLE ME TO THE DEATH!!!!!”
It was an unbelievable shout, done in unison with the guardian spirit behind him. From the moment he bellowed, the Giant from the lamp became mute, unable to cast any spell, unable to put up a fight.
And finally, the Giant turned back into smoke and disappeared. Once the battle was over, Igor inspected the teenager.
Because the fight had just gotten over, the teenager seemed unaware of Igor. Igor had to make a decision now.
‘Two, if the Teenager wins without much problem, he would leave the Oasis.’
‘Three, in case the fight was close and the teenager pulls off a narrow victory.’
Igor was trying to decide if it was case two or three, but he heard the Chinese Teenager talk to himself.
“This is probably the first time I lost so much HP… right, Operator?”
And the Operator answered his question.
[This is correct. You have lost a total of 4724 HP. This is the highest recorded HP you have lost so far.]
Igor quickly considered his options. He had monopolized all the points from the very start.
‘I don’t know how he obtained such powerful items… but there should be little if any difference in stats’
Considering stat allocation needed for Strength, Dexterity, and Endurance, 4724 is not a small amount of HP to lose. Even more so considering the Teenage was also using magic.
‘His total HP should be about 10,000… no, it’s most likely less than that.’
The Lightning spell attack from earlier must have dealt a great amount of damage. Igor made up his mind and looked down at his shield. That Chinese teenager was without a doubt stronger than himself.
But if he was below half health, or farther below that then Igor stood a chance. Especially if he took the first strike in an ambush. It was then,
[Raid 100% complete.]
[However, there is an active ‘Troll’ in the party.]
The Operator gave an announcement.
‘Troll?’
The Chinese Teenager came to find out about him. At this moment, Igor decided.
‘If I don’t get stronger now, I will die later.’
He immediately threw his round shield.
‘Whoosh woosh woosh’
He drew his sword and charged towards the teen.
Note : Battle of Changban Historical background:
The Battle of Changban was a battle fought by warlords Cao Cao and Liu Bei in 208 in the late Eastern Han dynasty. Three legends spawned in this battle.
Liu Bei was in a retreat, running away south. After finally convincing the master strategist Zhuge Liang after what is known as the Three Visitations 三顧草廬 삼고초려. Soon after accepting Zhuge Liang’s Longzhong plan (long term strategy to attack and capture the Imperial Capital), Liu Biao (who had been protecting Liu Bei from Cao Cao) died and was succeeded by Liu Cong, who immediately surrendered to Cao Cao without telling Liu Bei. This is why by the time Liu Bei found out and began the retreat, Cao Cao’s gigantic army was already marching upon his city.
Loved by the people, the people decided to follow him, and the peasants initiated a voluntary exodus to follow their lord, with their numbers as high as several hundred thousands. This is the first legend of Battle of Changban.
Cao Cao at the time commanded the Mongolian Cavalry division and rode hard day and night to catch up with Liu Bei. Liu Bei, moving slowly with hundreds of thousands of peasants which included elderly and children, could not move fast enough, and eventually they were caught. This is the Battle of Changban. During this battle, most of Liu Bei’s followers were caught, killed, or vowed loyalty to Cao Cao. Most of Liu Bei’s family was captured by Cao Cao, to which one of his heroic generals, Zhao Yun, charged head on against the gigantic armies of Cao Cao. Liu Bei’s men shouted that Zhao Yun has abandoned his lord, to which Liu Bei refused to believe it. Lo and Behold, from within the middle of the Cao Cao forces, Zhao Yun returned with the infant son (Liu Bei’s Heir) and Liu Bei’s main wife, rescued from captivity. This is the second legend of Battle of Changban. According to legend, Liu Bei throws away his son and cast him to the ground, angry that because of the infant son he almost got a great general and a hero killed and Liu Bei’s other wives suicided by throwing themselves into the well so that they don’t burden Zhao Yun by having to protect them all.
During the retreat, Zhang Fei (the sworn brother) of Liu Bei decided to form a rearguard with 20 cavalrymen, blocking the main bridge across the River to buy Liu Bei and the final few surviving followers to escape from the battle. Zhang Fei is a legendary warrior himself. And he alone, with just 20 men, were able to block the bridge and defend against the entire might of the Cao Cao army until Liu Bei could escape. After killing dozens of enemies, including several generals, He made the legendary shout “I am Zhang Yide! Come battle me to the death!” to which Cao Cao’s army’s morale broke and no longer dared to fight him. The great army of Cao Cao retreated. Left alone, he and the men destroyed the bridge and retreated to Liu Bei’s camp. The passage that Sungjin read out loud is actually from the real ‘Romance of the Three Kingdoms’ where it describes Zhang Fei’s legendary defense of the bridge.
Hope you liked the backstory! We thought to do a note on it since it has been mentioned in the novel and with Sungjin owning Romance of the three kingdoms, we thought it’d be nice to give a small background ^^ If you enjoy our work do consider supporting us through Paypal or Patreon. Ty ?